If you've ever found your phone charging cable annoyingly short you are not alone.

Tried to read your phone in bed while it's charging? Tried using it while it's plugged in and you're on the couch watching TV?

It can be a right pain.

Even a cursory search online will bring up consumers railing against the stubby cable.

But, of course, every part of every product created by companies like Apple and Samsung will have had countless hours spent on their design.

So the length of the cable is unlikely to be an oversight.

Are the cables really that short?

Before we go any further we need to establish if the iPhone cable is actually short. So how long is it? The standard cable you receive in your sleek minimalist white box is one metre long.

(Image: Publicity Picture)

Despite being advised not to, many of us will use our smart phones in bed. A standard Ikea bed and mattress is about 70cm high. If you have you phone plugged into a standard plug near the floor the only way you are going to be able to read plugged in phone is to lie right on the edge of your bed.

The same is true for desks. Unless you are lucky enough to have sockets halfway up the wall behind your desk you are probably charging your phone on the floor. Not end of the world – but a pain.

As one user says: "I cannot sit at my desk which is 10ft from the wall and sit in my chair and hold the phone to my ear without sliding my chair closer to the wall and leaning towards the wall."

How does the iPhone compare to other phones?

The Samsung Galaxy comes with a 50% longer charger as standard at 1.5 metres.

Google's new phone, the Pixel, comes with two cables. The standard plug charger is the same as the iPhone but it does come with a one-metre USB-C to USB-C charger also.

So why is it short?

We went direct to Apple to ask how they had decided on the length of their cable. They seemed perplexed about why were asking.

The company tends not to respond to enquiries about products outside official releases.

However there are thousands of Apple discussion forums online, many of which have company staff commenting on them, that may hold the answer.

Writing on the Q and A website Quora, former Apple employee Mark Steiner said: "The product design team studies everything. The accessory cables, in particular, are studied, researched, tested and produced to be at 'the ideal' length for the majority of uses.

"This includes from the back of an iMac, or the side of a MacBook to a spot on your desk. Or from the wall power outlet behind your bedside table to your bedside. Or from your kitchen counter power outlet to a spot on the counter.

Video Loading

Video Unavailable

Click to playTap to play

The video will start in 8Cancel

Play now

Read More

"This is all determined with the intention that you have the fewest number of 'loops' or 'tidy-ups' possible. If the design team had their way, the cable would be infinitely elastic; in fact, if they truly had their way, there wouldn't be a need for a cable, period.

"There is also a degree of 'conservation of effort'. Instead of devoting a considerable amount of time and resources to producing three or four different lengths of cable, in eighteen different colors (because, invariably, somebody always wants black or pink), with all the packaging and merchandising variables to support them, you just trust that one of your partnership manufacturers will produce them for you."

"It is probably because they are trying to keep the design as minimal as possible, which is a theme that shows throughout their product line," he said.

"For many people and many uses, the typical six-foot long charging cable used by other manufacturers is just too much. It is a pain to carry in a bag; you either have to spend time winding and unwinding it every time, or spend time untangling it.

"When using it with a computer, you usually only need to get from one point on your desk to another. With a six-foot USB cable, I have to wind it up and the coil takes up a lot of area on my desk."

What can you do if you want a longer cable?

To avoid stating the obvious let's assume you have considered just unplugging the phone.

Your best option is to buy a longer cable. Unfortunately for you this could involve shelling out the same as most people's monthly phone contract.

Apple's 2m version of the cable is £29. Obviously are alternatives out there but you must be very careful they are reputably made and the correct spec. There has been a significant increase in fire service call outs due to dodgy knockoff chargers.

Another way round it is to use a portable charger and have your phone plugged into that.